In Life of Pi, the Dorado represents the strength brought by hope in the face of dispair. In Pi’s most desperate moments, when he is on the verge of giving up, hope brings him new strength. Martel uses the dorado to symbolize the strength hope brings him using one of Pi's faiths: Christianity. In the Christian Book of Genesis, after cleansing the world of sin with a great flood, God sends a promise to never again destroy humanity through a rainbow. The rainbow symbolizes a new hope for man in the face of destruction and despair (Bilbestudy.org). Martel uses the Christian rainbow symbol to associate hope with the dorado. When a dorado dies, its nervous system fails resulting in the wild movement of its light-refracting scales. The wild movement causes the dorado to rapidly flash brilliant colors (Florida Museum of Natural History). In the novel, as Pi observes this phenomenon, he “felt like I [he] was beating a rainbow” (Martel 185). The dorado’s rainbow appearance alludes to the Christian symbol of hope and promise. Martel indicates the strength of this hope by describing the dorado’s might. When Pi struggles to wrestle his first dorado aboard the life raft, Martel illustrates the force behind the fish’s fight by labeling it “as strong as an ox” (Martel 184). He also describes the sheer size of powerful dorados, which average a monstrous 30 pounds of muscle at up to six feet long (American Littoral Society). Pi’s bucket would fit the muscular fish “like a hat” (Martel 184). More than merely being strong, dorados bring Pi strength. In chapter 80, when a rainbow dorado accidentally jumps aboard the raft directly between Pi and Richard Parker, the two have a face off. Pi almost gives up, stating his "time had come" (Martel 221). Nevertheless, Pi ignores his assured doom. He directly challenges the tiger, staring him dead in the eyes with unparalleled determination. Richard Parker “was nothing compared to the strength in my mind” (Martel 221). Pi’s courage wins him the dorado and Richard Parker backs down. Just like God's rainbow, the fish brings Pi new-found hope and courage in face of dispair, “from that day onwards I [Pi] felt my mastery was no longer in question” (Martel 222). Pi learns he does in fact have hope against Richard Parker. Martel’s dorado brings Pi strength and courage in the form of hope, illustrated by the dorado’s rainbow colors.The brilliant blue, green, and yellow flashes connect Pi's acquired strength to the strength humanity gained from God's rainbow. Humanity rebuilt with a new, stronger faith in God after the suffering of the flood, and he has allowed our world to flourish ever since. Hope brings strength in the face of despair.
References from Novel
“There were fish–big fish with protruding foreheads and very long dorsal fins, dorados they are called“ (Martel 154)
“And here the cars were of the craziest colours. The dorados–there must have been over fifty patrolling beneath the raft–showed off their bright gold, blue and green as they whisked by” (Martel 176)
“ dorados were leaping out of the water in hot pursuit of them. The much larger dorados couldn’t match their flying, but they were faster swimmers and their short lunges were very powerful“ (Martel 181-182)
“A dorado surged forth and lunged for the fish head … The dorado exploded out of the water, tugging on the line so hard I thought it was going to pull me off the raft … The fish was as strong as an ox … it fought like a devil” (Martel 184)
“It was over three feet long. The bucket was useless. It would fit the dorado like a hat … It was a writhing mass of pure muscle” (Martel 184)
“A dorado is a magnificent-looking fish, large, fleshy and sleek, with a bulging forehead that speaks of a forceful personality, a very long dorsal fin as proud as a cock’s comb, and a coat of scales that is smooth and bright. I felt I was dealing fate a serious blow by engaging such a handsome adversary. With this fish I was retaliating against the sea, against the wind, against the sinking of ships, against all circumstances that were working against me. ‘Thank you, Lord Vishnu, thank you!’ I shouted. ‘Once you saved the world by taking the form of a fish. Now you have saved me by taking the form of a fish. Thank you, thank you!’” (Martel 184-185)
“did a most extraordinary thing as it died: it began to flash all kinds of colours in rapid succession. Blue, green, red, gold and violet flickered and shimmered neon-like on its surface as it struggled. I felt I was beating a rainbow to death” (Martel 185)
“I fell asleep, my mind lit up by the chameleon-like flickering of the dying dorado.” (Martel 186)
“Dorado had a firmer texture and a stronger taste” (Martel 212)
“Of all the dorados, I remember one in particular, a special dorado … But I held my stare. Richard Parker licked his nose, groaned and turned away. He angrily batted a flying fish. I had won. I gasped with disbelief, heaved the dorado into my hands and hurried away to the raft. Shortly thereafter, I delivered to Richard Parker a fair chunk of the fish. From that day onwards I felt my mastery was no longer in question” (Martel 221-222)
“ I caught a dorado. We hadn’t eaten anything in three days” (Martel 240)
“It was very exciting when the cook hauled aboard a turtle or caught a great big dorado. It made us smile broadly“ (Martel 309)
Physical Characteristics
Single dorsal fin extends length of the body
Anal fin starting in middle of body and ending at tail fin
Deeply forked tail fin designed for high speed swimming
Blunt head and many small teeth in the large mouth
Dramatic, bright coloration especially underwater where it reflects a wide variety of colors
Golden on the side, blue and green on the back and side, white and yellow on the belly
Large fish averaging 30lbs in weight and 3ft in length
Grow quickly maturing 4-5 months into their 4 year lifespan
Loose bright color soon after death and turn silver
In Life of Pi, the Dorado represents the strength brought by hope in the face of dispair. In Pi’s most desperate moments, when he is on the verge of giving up, hope brings him new strength. Martel uses the dorado to symbolize the strength hope brings him using one of Pi's faiths: Christianity. In the Christian Book of Genesis, after cleansing the world of sin with a great flood, God sends a promise to never again destroy humanity through a rainbow. The rainbow symbolizes a new hope for man in the face of destruction and despair (Bilbestudy.org). Martel uses the Christian rainbow symbol to associate hope with the dorado. When a dorado dies, its nervous system fails resulting in the wild movement of its light-refracting scales. The wild movement causes the dorado to rapidly flash brilliant colors (Florida Museum of Natural History). In the novel, as Pi observes this phenomenon, he “felt like I [he] was beating a rainbow” (Martel 185). The dorado’s rainbow appearance alludes to the Christian symbol of hope and promise. Martel indicates the strength of this hope by describing the dorado’s might. When Pi struggles to wrestle his first dorado aboard the life raft, Martel illustrates the force behind the fish’s fight by labeling it “as strong as an ox” (Martel 184). He also describes the sheer size of powerful dorados, which average a monstrous 30 pounds of muscle at up to six feet long (American Littoral Society). Pi’s bucket would fit the muscular fish “like a hat” (Martel 184). More than merely being strong, dorados bring Pi strength. In chapter 80, when a rainbow dorado accidentally jumps aboard the raft directly between Pi and Richard Parker, the two have a face off. Pi almost gives up, stating his "time had come" (Martel 221). Nevertheless, Pi ignores his assured doom. He directly challenges the tiger, staring him dead in the eyes with unparalleled determination. Richard Parker “was nothing compared to the strength in my mind” (Martel 221). Pi’s courage wins him the dorado and Richard Parker backs down. Just like God's rainbow, the fish brings Pi new-found hope and courage in face of dispair, “from that day onwards I [Pi] felt my mastery was no longer in question” (Martel 222). Pi learns he does in fact have hope against Richard Parker. Martel’s dorado brings Pi strength and courage in the form of hope, illustrated by the dorado’s rainbow colors.The brilliant blue, green, and yellow flashes connect Pi's acquired strength to the strength humanity gained from God's rainbow. Humanity rebuilt with a new, stronger faith in God after the suffering of the flood, and he has allowed our world to flourish ever since. Hope brings strength in the face of despair.
References from Novel
Physical Characteristics
Common Characteristics/Traits/Habits
Natural Habitat
Common Symbolism